05/28/2026
A good recap of the "unexpectedly productive" legislative session.
From State Representative Zack Stephenson
Hey neighbors,
I hope everyone’s having a good week and enjoying the warm weather. The dust has settled on the end of the legislative session, and I’m proud to label this session “unexpectedly productive.” Despite a closely divided Legislature, we were able to work across the aisle to save Hennepin County Medical Center, invest $1.2 billion in local infrastructure and jobs, prevent fraud, and more.
We Delivered for Minnesotans
Selection of my favorite bills this session
That $1.2 billion bonding bill was hard-fought and won for Minnesotans across the state, and includes construction projects from updating bridges and highways, to water treatment infrastructure, to new parks and paths, and all of the jobs that come with them. This is a significant investment in our state - when you invest up front, you avoid the immense cost of crumbling infrastructure in the long run.
The emergency funding to save Hennepin County Medical Center was a big lift, but we got it. If HCMC were to close, it would strip needed medical care access from patients across the state. No matter where you live in Minnesota, it’s likely that you’ll get care for your worst illness or injury at HCMC. We’re glad we could save this vital resource.
We fought off the worst effects of Trump’s H.R. 1 so Minnesota will have a stronger, more resilient health care system in the face of Medicaid cuts compared to the states around us.
We incorporated disability accommodations into the Minnesota Human Rights Act, which will prove useful as the federal government continues to defund disability services.
We passed emergency rental assistance, to help renters stay in their homes during crises. (Like Operation Metro Surge, where people of color or people with accents were afraid to leave home.)
We put increased property tax refunds on the table and passed it - federal cuts to programs like Medicaid and SNAP are driving up property taxes, and we’re glad to get this done.
We passed the strongest anti-fraud measures in the country, largely led by Rep. Matt Norris in Blaine. We created an Office of the Inspector General, invested in more Medicaid Fraud investigators, updated county IT systems, systemized site visits to businesses, and more. We take fraud extremely seriously, which is why we do the hard work of passing serious policy to fix it — it’s not a political talking point for us.
We prohibited insurance companies from using AI to set prior authorization barriers to care - something we’ve seen used at the expense of your health.
We protected our kids from harmful social media practices.
We passed important school safety grants and funded an Anonymous Threat Reporting System that will allow parents, students, and educators to flag suspicious behavior that could lead to violence.
We banned scammy prediction markets from operating in Minnesota. These markets are driven by insider information and have been shown to be highly addictive. No one likes rigged games.
We Should Have Been Able to Do More
Even on legislation where a vast majority of Minnesotans agree, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle would not budge on these important policies. They were more worried about insurance companies, private equity firms, the gun lobby, and Trump than they were about Minnesotans.
We could have banned huge private equity firms from buying up over 300 houses in Minnesota, which drives up housing prices, property taxes, and rent and gives them an irresponsible amount of power over our markets.
We could have held Big Pharma accountable for skirting the law and refusing to support local hospitals. This was a bipartisan bill that got thrown out as soon as Pharma lobbyists came around.
We could have responded to the death of two Minnesota children, and the injuries of tens more, with action rather than words. The parents of Annunciation students were incredible advocates to prevent future mass shootings this year at the Capitol, and the other side wouldn’t even give their bill a vote. With common-sense gun safety legislation, we would save lives, and we could have done it with one more vote.
The other side wouldn’t consider anything related to ICE either. They refused to support a fair investigation into the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, they wouldn’t support grants for the small businesses who were struggling after the occupation, and they even blocked measures to simply say that ICE officers shouldn’t operate in or around school buildings without a warrant. It’s jarring to see them deny the reality of what happened to Minnesota. With one more vote, we could have had accountability.
We could have banned surveillance pricing, which corporations and large grocery stores are using to selectively increase prices based on what they know about you and your shopping habits. It’s unfair, it’s creepy, and it’s weird. It could have been banned in Minnesota with one more vote.
15+ other proposals to address the costs of health care, child care, energy, groceries and more, which were blocked because of corporate interests.
Stay in Touch!
It is a privilege and an honor to serve, and I am grateful to the residents of our district for the opportunity. Change doesn’t happen quickly or easily, it happens because a ton of people take the time to advocate for themselves and others and work hard together to create change.
Thank you for reading my legislative update, and please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Zack
